On September 30, just as Omoyele Sowore was about to breathe the air of freedom after a court-ordered his release from 45-day detention by the Department of State Security (DSS), another round of seven-count charges was slammed on him by the DSS.
Sowore has consequently spent more than the 45 days which a judge ordered on August 3 for the #RevolutionNow protest which he tried to convene.
Another known critic of the Buhari administration, Abubakar Idris, popularly known as Dadiyata, has been kidnapped for more than two months now. Dadiyata’s family confirmed to the media that he was abducted as he drove into his residence in Barnawa neighbourhood of Kaduna around 1 a.m. on Friday, August 2. All fingers are now pointing at the government operatives who have a reputation of making members of the opposition disappear.
The Executive government could not fortuitously deny having a hand in the incarceration of Dadiyata as the Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, lightly admitted that the government has the responsibility of withdrawing certain elements in the opposition from having access to the public if they are committing treason. That could be seen as indirectly saying that the executive arm of government has extra-judicial powers to incarcerate people who they do not like their face.
In a similar vein, on May 10, Stephen Kefas, a vocal critic of the Kaduna Governor Nasir El-Rufai’s administration, was abducted in his abode in Port Harcourt. It was later discovered that he is in custody in Kaduna state. Just like the Federal Government, El-Rufai also reportedly claimed last week that his government will not hesitate to arrest and bring anybody who criticizes his administration to Kaduna for prosecution.
Journalists such as Jones Abiri, Abah Jalingo, Segun Ogundipe, among others, were once held by the DSS or the police on spurious charges presented as treasonable. One more critic of the government, journalist-activist, Mr. Chido Onumah, was reportedly picked up by DSS operatives last week for interrogation.
It was this same treatment which was administered to former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki, and the Shi’ite leader, Ibrahim El-Zakzaky. Of course, all of these shenanigans, which remind us of the military juntas of years gone by, may culminate into anarchy if not fiercely spoken against and resisted.
If the government can begin to make citizens disappear at their whim, and not because a court has sanctioned such arrests of known oppositional figures, the difference between criminal kidnappers and government institutions such as the DSS becomes negligible. The people may soon begin to point accusatory fingers at the government whenever there are instances of missing people, and the distrust between Nigerians and their leaders widen the more.
It is not only too early into Buhari’s second term to be riddled with controversies surrounding the inordinate arrest or disappearance of people, but it is also a misdirection of purpose if the executive federal government is rather abusing its powers to stifle criticism than working assiduously at improving the lives and living conditions of millions of Nigerians.
Featured Image Source: Premium Times NG
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